Law vs. Technology: The Supreme Administrative Court of the Slovak Republic announces a competition for students

The Supreme Administrative Court is opening its doors to academia and announcing a competition for the best professional article on the topic “Usability of artificial intelligence in justice”. The initiative is intended for university students in Slovakia who have the ambition to bring a fresh perspective to the discussion about the impact of technological progress on law or justice.

The competition theme is intentionally formulated only in broad terms. It reflects the speed with which artificial intelligence (AI) is penetrating our lives, the complexity of its practical use and the challenges in the field of regulation. Students can focus on AI in justice in general or choose a specific area – from ethical risks and legislative challenges to the impact of technology on the key institution of the legal judge.

A bridge between theory and judicial practice

With this initiative, the Supreme Administrative Court wants to bring the world of the highest judiciary closer to students and introduce them to the administrative judiciary as a modern pillar of the state that keeps pace with technological progress and societal changes. The ambition is to create a functional connection with academia, arouse students’ deeper interest in the functioning of the judicial system, and enable them to directly gain insight into the institutional life of the court.

The President of the Supreme Administrative Court, Pavol Naď, explains the motivation for the project: “Our goal is to encourage students to think about the constantly evolving legal scope of administrative judiciary, which is a specific area of ​​justice with an extremely broad agenda. We believe that by arousing their interest in administrative law and judicial control of public authority activities in combination with a technological and practically ubiquitous topic that is close to them, we will bridge the academic world in which they operate with the reality of decision-making.”

Competition criteria

The expert committee will evaluate previously unpublished texts, mainly in terms of originality, authenticity, quality of argumentation, and correct sourcing. The authors of a maximum of ten best works selected by the expert committee will be given the opportunity to present their conclusions in person at a student conference, held directly on the grounds of the Supreme Administrative Court in early May 2026.

Unique prizes are prepared for the successful contestants:

• Media space: The winner of the competition will be a guest on the “Administrative Podcast”.
• Publication in a prestigious professional journal: A maximum of five best works will be published in the peer-reviewed professional journal “Journal of Administrative Justice”, which is published by the Office of the Supreme Administrative Court in electronic form twice a year and whose primary focus is administrative law and administrative judicial proceedings (see more on the website of the (K)NSS SR: Journal of Administrative Justice).
• Personal development: The first three awardees will receive free access to an educational event organized on the grounds of the court and mentoring directly with a judge of the Supreme Administrative Court.
• Material prizes: Promotional items of the Supreme Administrative Court and its offices will be awarded to the five best-placed participants.

Technical information for interested parties

Each student can participate with only one previously unpublished work in the following format: maximum 12 standard pages in the format: .docx, including the bibliography; font: Times New Roman; font size: 12; line spacing: single; margins: 2.5 cm; alignment: block; page numbering; at the end of the work, a list of used literature in alphabetical order must be provided. Articles, together with hand-signed attachments (application form, declaration of honor, information obligation and consent to the processing of personal data), must be sent electronically (a scan is sufficient) to the address sutaz@nssud.sk no later than March 30, 2026.

Important notice: The expert committee reserves the right not to invite participants to the oral round, not to award a prize or not to publish the work in the “Journal of Administrative Justice” if the submitted texts do not meet the established qualitative and professional requirements. The evaluation of the contributions will be carried out according to the criteria determined by the expert committee at its first meeting at the latest.

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Attachments in Slovak:

Príloha č. 1 – Prihlasovací formulár (PDF, 5 MB)
Príloha č. 2 – Čestné vyhlásenie (PDF, 2 MB)
Príloha č. 3 – IP a súhlas so spracúvaním osobných údajov (PDF, 2 MB)